To begin this practice
Let yourself be in a relaxed and comfortable position and just bring your awareness on your breath and just observe your natural way of breathing.
Inhaling in through the nose, exhaling out through the nose or the mouth as you feel comfortable
Just stay with your breath, just observe with gentle curiosity the rise and fall of your breath
And allow yourself to relax…
In the relaxed state you are, let yourself bring to mind
Someone whom, the moment you think of them, you feel love and appreciation
See if you can bring to mind
It could be a relative, a close friend
Just a general sense, that when you think of them you feel happy
Can pick a child
Or you can always choose a pet
A dog or a cat
A creature it’s fairly easy to feel love for
So let them come to mind
Have them– have a sense of them being in front of you
You can feel them, sense them, see them
And as you imagine them
Notice how you’re feeling inside
Maybe you feel some warmth
Or there’s some heat to your face
A smile, sense of expansiveness
This is a loving kindness
This is a natural feeling that’s accessible to all of us at any moment
So now having this loved one in front of you
Begin to wish them well
May you be safe and protected
May you be happy and peaceful
May you be healthy and strong
May you have ease and wellbeing
And as I say these words, you can use my words or your own words
And have a sense of letting this loving kindness come from you
And begin to touch this loved one
Reaching out
You might think in images
You might have a sense of colour or light
You might just have a feeling
The words may continue to bring on more of this feeling
And so as you’re sending out these words and these feelings of loving kindness
Also check into yourself and see how you’re feeling inside, and allow these feelings to grow in the center of your heart and feel warmth in your heart
And now imagine that this loved one turns around
And begins to send it back to you
So see if you can receive the loving kindness
Take it in
And they’re wishing you well, may you be happy
Meaning you
May you be peaceful and at ease
May you be safe and protected
May you have joy, well being
Letting yourself take it in
Now if it’s possible , see if you can send loving kindness to yourself
You can imagine it coming down your body from your heart
And now let this loving kindness expand out
Spreading
Touching anyone that you want to touch right now
In all directions
People you know, people you don’t know
People you have difficulty with
People you love
Just imagine expanding and touching
And each person or animal
Whoever is touched by this loving kindness
Each person is changed
You can imagine that
So may everyone everywhere be happy and peaceful and at ease
May we all experience great joy
And express gratitude for having this beautiful experience
